Phyllis J. Johnson

Phyllis June Hill Johnson passed away February 15, 2019. She was born June 1, 1928 in Salt Lake City, Utah to William and Dorothy Hill. She married Leland Johnson on August 9, 1947 in Reno, Nevada. He preceded her in death on November 19, 1971.

Phyllis is survived by her three sons, Douglas Leland (Cherie’), Jeffery Phillip (Guylyn), and Harold “Hal” (Shonna). She also had eight grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. A celebration of life will be held at a later date.

The family would like to thank both the loving caregivers at the Wentworth Memory Care Center in Draper for the compassionate and loving way they cared for Phyllis as well as the caregivers from Tender Care Hospice Services who were so valuable in the last months of Phyllis’ life.

In 1953, Phyllis and Lee moved their family to the decommissioned army base known as Camp Kearns, becoming one of the first 500 families to live there. Phyllis and Lee were instrumental in starting the Kearns Volunteer Fire Department as well as the Ladies Auxiliary. Phyllis, along with the other firefighter wives, was trained to drive and operate the fire engines to answer calls when the men were at work. Phyllis and the other volunteers instituted many recreation programs for the children of Kearns, including the weekly movies shown at the fire station. She also was instrumental in organizing a Kearns baseball team that eventually became part of the Granger Pony League. In 1954, Salt Lake County Fire Department started the process to absorb the Kearns Volunteers as they formally organized in 1955. In 1958, the Kearns Volunteer Fire Department became full-time Salt Lake County firefighters, placing Phyllis in the role of a full-time firefighter wife, a role she took on with enthusiasm.

In November, 1971, Phyllis’ husband Lee was killed in a line-of-duty accident. Despite losing her husband, Phyllis stayed involved with the Salt Lake County Fireman’s Ladies Auxiliary for many years, holding many offices in the organization.

Phyllis also worked for Edo Western and US West, where she retired after many years of service. In her spare time, she enjoyed her frequent trips to Wendover, where she won $60,000 in one year! She also loved boating with Lee and her boys, and was an excellent water skier.

Her last few years were difficult when a fall started her life in wheelchair, and dementia set in. However, despite her physical and mental difficulties, she remained as spunky as ever. She loved having her family nearby and a good cup of coffee. Her hard fight at the end allowed her family to gather at her side to share memories before she finally passed away. Her life embraced family right to the end. She will be greatly missed and remembered through love and laughter by all who knew her.